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The airline follows Airbus' investment in Canadian climate tech company Carbon Engineering.
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Photo: Lukas Souza | Simple Flying
The science is becoming clear that if we are to have any chance of halting catastrophic climate change, we will need to reduce not only the amount of CO2 we are putting out in the atmosphere but also capture the emissions that we are causing. Preferably even the ones we have already contributed to. Our current best bet to succeed in this is to scale direct air carbon capture technology (DACC). On Thursday, Air Canada announced that it had invested in Canadian climate solutions company Carbon Engineering (CE), currently the world's largest DACC research and development facility in Squamish, British Columbia.
The funds, CA$6.75 million (US$5.06 million), are provided in the form of an equity investment/loan and come from Air Canada's Climate Action Plan fund of CA$50 million (US$37.5 million). In September, the airline pledged US$5 million from the fund to Swedish electric aircraft developer Heart Aerospace for the purchase of its updated 30-seater zero-emission battery-powered aircraft, the ES-30.
The airline follows Airbus' investment in Canadian climate tech company Carbon Engineering.
The science is becoming clear that if we are to have any chance of halting catastrophic climate change, we will need to reduce not only the amount of CO2 we are putting out in the atmosphere but also capture the emissions that we are causing. Preferably even the ones we have already contributed to. Our current best bet to succeed in this is to scale direct air carbon capture technology (DACC). On Thursday, Air Canada announced that it had invested in Canadian climate solutions company Carbon Engineering (CE), currently the world's largest DACC research and development facility in Squamish, British Columbia.
The funds, CA$6.75 million (US$5.06 million), are provided in the form of an equity investment/loan and come from Air Canada's Climate Action Plan fund of CA$50 million (US$37.5 million). In September, the airline pledged US$5 million from the fund to Swedish electric aircraft developer Heart Aerospace for the purchase of its updated 30-seater zero-emission battery-powered aircraft, the ES-30.
Photo: Carbon Engineering
Innovative and long-term solutions
Michael Rousseau, President and Chief Executive Officer at Air Canada, commented on the latest investment in the carrier's commitment to counteracting aviation's impact on global warming,
"We remain focused on seeking innovative, long-term, sustainable GHG emissions reduction solutions for aviation, and carbon capture is one we have outlined in our strategy to achieving net-zero GHG emissions by 2050. Last year, we became the first Canadian airline to sign an MOU with CE to explore carbon capture scalability and other initiatives for our industry. We are proud to invest in CE to further advance new, transformational technologies towards carbon removal commercially."
Michael Rousseau, President and Chief Executive Officer at Air Canada, commented on the latest investment in the carrier's commitment to counteracting aviation's impact on global warming,
"We remain focused on seeking innovative, long-term, sustainable GHG emissions reduction solutions for aviation, and carbon capture is one we have outlined in our strategy to achieving net-zero GHG emissions by 2050. Last year, we became the first Canadian airline to sign an MOU with CE to explore carbon capture scalability and other initiatives for our industry. We are proud to invest in CE to further advance new, transformational technologies towards carbon removal commercially."
Photo: Air Canada
Carbon Engineering is becoming popular
Air Canada is not the only major aviation industry company to support Carbon Engineering. At the same time the airline announced its investment, so did behemoth aerospace manufacturer Airbus. CE has also attracted investments from HP, Chevron Corp., Occidental Petroleum Corp., Canadian billionaires Peter J. Thomson and Murray Edwards, and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.
Airbus has previously committed to the purchase of 400,000 tonnes of carbon removal credits from Occidental's subsidiary, 1PointFive's DAC facility in Houston, Texas. The plant is intended to be operational in 2025 and will have a CO2 removal capacity of one million tonnes a year. 1PointFive and Carbon Engineering also have a partnership agreement in place to help execute large numbers of DACC projects around the world - the aim is 100 direct air capture plants globally by 2035.
Air Canada is not the only major aviation industry company to support Carbon Engineering. At the same time the airline announced its investment, so did behemoth aerospace manufacturer Airbus. CE has also attracted investments from HP, Chevron Corp., Occidental Petroleum Corp., Canadian billionaires Peter J. Thomson and Murray Edwards, and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.
Airbus has previously committed to the purchase of 400,000 tonnes of carbon removal credits from Occidental's subsidiary, 1PointFive's DAC facility in Houston, Texas. The plant is intended to be operational in 2025 and will have a CO2 removal capacity of one million tonnes a year. 1PointFive and Carbon Engineering also have a partnership agreement in place to help execute large numbers of DACC projects around the world - the aim is 100 direct air capture plants globally by 2035.
Want to know more about sustainability in aviation?
Backed by Airbus and Air Canada, company says it's closer to pulling carbon from the sky
B.C.-based Carbon Engineering specializes in direct air capture technology
Author of the article: Meghan Potkins
Publishing date: Nov 17, 2022
At Carbon Engineering’s Squamish, B.C., headquarters, staff have been working with aerospace giant Airbus for the past eight months.
PHOTO BY HANDOUT CARBON ENGINEERING
Canada’s Carbon Engineering Ltd. said an undisclosed investment from Airbus S.E. will accelerate the industrial-scale deployment of its proprietary direct air capture technology, which pulls carbon dioxide directly from the surrounding air, and presents a critical opportunity for airlines seeking to decarbonize.
The Squamish, B.C.-based clean technology company, which specializes in the commercialization of direct air capture (DAC) technology, has been working with the aerospace giant for the past eight months, beginning with the announcement in March that Airbus would purchase 400,000 tonnes of carbon removal credits from Carbon Engineering’s U.S. partner, 1PointFive, a subsidiary of American oil producer Occidental Petroleum Corp.
Carbon Engineering said Airbus’ latest investment, along with a $6.75 million equity investment from Air Canada, will be used over the next two years to introduce and test a lineup of improved equipment and operational procedures at its Squamish innovation centre — changes the company bets will cut the cost of building and operating commercial DAC plants, including a project already underway in the Texas Permian Basin by 1PointFive.
At a press conference Nov. 17, Carbon Engineering CEO Daniel Friedmann said the company’s technology could be deployed by 1PointFive at dozens of DAC plants in the United States over the next decade, with each plant capable of removing up to one million metric tons of CO2 per year
“Carbon removal through direct air capture provides a solution that can address any carbon dioxide emission, no matter how hard it is (to capture), regardless of where it is emitted,” said Friedmann. “It means it can be used to address most of the difficult emissions, making true net zero possible.”
Friedmann said large-scale deployment of the technology in the U.S. and abroad will require more airlines and other large emitters to purchase carbon credits since the financing of DAC facilities is dependent on demand for the product.
“We can decarbonize aviation, with a reasonable amount of time and sites,” Friedmann said. Airbus and Air Canada are leading the way to make this possible. Now we look to the rest of the airlines to commit to off-take and reserve their spot at these facilities.”
Canada’s Carbon Engineering Ltd. said an undisclosed investment from Airbus S.E. will accelerate the industrial-scale deployment of its proprietary direct air capture technology, which pulls carbon dioxide directly from the surrounding air, and presents a critical opportunity for airlines seeking to decarbonize.
The Squamish, B.C.-based clean technology company, which specializes in the commercialization of direct air capture (DAC) technology, has been working with the aerospace giant for the past eight months, beginning with the announcement in March that Airbus would purchase 400,000 tonnes of carbon removal credits from Carbon Engineering’s U.S. partner, 1PointFive, a subsidiary of American oil producer Occidental Petroleum Corp.
Carbon Engineering said Airbus’ latest investment, along with a $6.75 million equity investment from Air Canada, will be used over the next two years to introduce and test a lineup of improved equipment and operational procedures at its Squamish innovation centre — changes the company bets will cut the cost of building and operating commercial DAC plants, including a project already underway in the Texas Permian Basin by 1PointFive.
At a press conference Nov. 17, Carbon Engineering CEO Daniel Friedmann said the company’s technology could be deployed by 1PointFive at dozens of DAC plants in the United States over the next decade, with each plant capable of removing up to one million metric tons of CO2 per year
“Carbon removal through direct air capture provides a solution that can address any carbon dioxide emission, no matter how hard it is (to capture), regardless of where it is emitted,” said Friedmann. “It means it can be used to address most of the difficult emissions, making true net zero possible.”
Friedmann said large-scale deployment of the technology in the U.S. and abroad will require more airlines and other large emitters to purchase carbon credits since the financing of DAC facilities is dependent on demand for the product.
“We can decarbonize aviation, with a reasonable amount of time and sites,” Friedmann said. Airbus and Air Canada are leading the way to make this possible. Now we look to the rest of the airlines to commit to off-take and reserve their spot at these facilities.”
The aviation sector has become a target for environmentalists and policymakers concerned about the impact the industry has on global CO2 emissions. Alternative fuels, electric and hydrogen technologies, as well as offsets and carbon capture have been floated as potential solutions for a sector that is committed to reaching net-zero carbon emissions from operations by 2050.
A spokesperson for Airbus, the world’s largest planemaker, said the company hopes to accelerate the development and deployment of direct air capture technology.
“As COP27 ends and the urgency to act on climate actions is rising, we want to reinforce our trust and our support in Carbon Engineering and invest again in their technology to accelerate its development and deployment,” said Karine Guenan, vice-president of ZEROe Ecosystem, Airbus, at a news conference. “This investment contributes to the Canadian economy, making the country an actor in supporting our ambitions toward net zero by 2050.”
In an interview following Thursday’s announcement, Friedmann said Carbon Engineering, which develops and licenses its technology to partners like 1PointFive, has seen more progress in the deployment of its technologies outside of Canada, specifically in the U.S., where government incentives to finance and build DAC projects have galloped ahead under the U.S. inflation act.
“The approach in the U.S. is to incentivize by providing a tax refund effectively,” Friedmann said. “So you can actually go to the financial community of the world and say, ‘look, the U.S. government is footing some of this bill (and) we have some customers’ — and you can finance a facility. I cannot do that easily in Canada today, or my partners can’t, because there’s no similar situation here.”
• Email: mpotkins@postmedia.com | Twitter: mpotkins
A spokesperson for Airbus, the world’s largest planemaker, said the company hopes to accelerate the development and deployment of direct air capture technology.
“As COP27 ends and the urgency to act on climate actions is rising, we want to reinforce our trust and our support in Carbon Engineering and invest again in their technology to accelerate its development and deployment,” said Karine Guenan, vice-president of ZEROe Ecosystem, Airbus, at a news conference. “This investment contributes to the Canadian economy, making the country an actor in supporting our ambitions toward net zero by 2050.”
In an interview following Thursday’s announcement, Friedmann said Carbon Engineering, which develops and licenses its technology to partners like 1PointFive, has seen more progress in the deployment of its technologies outside of Canada, specifically in the U.S., where government incentives to finance and build DAC projects have galloped ahead under the U.S. inflation act.
“The approach in the U.S. is to incentivize by providing a tax refund effectively,” Friedmann said. “So you can actually go to the financial community of the world and say, ‘look, the U.S. government is footing some of this bill (and) we have some customers’ — and you can finance a facility. I cannot do that easily in Canada today, or my partners can’t, because there’s no similar situation here.”
• Email: mpotkins@postmedia.com | Twitter: mpotkins
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